Anki Cozmo Robot Is the Cutest Way to Experience Artificial Intelligence

Cozmo is a self-aware, highly sophisticated robot that's masked as a cool-looking toy. Thanks to an upcoming software development kit, it will also become an easily accessible platform to learn about AI and robotics.

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The tiny Cozmo robot by Anki is surely the cutest piece of tech we've come across to date. Announced this summer to a great deal of acclaim, the self-aware gadget is part incredibly cool smart toy, part powerful and easily accessible platform to learn about artificial intelligence and robotics. And, trust us, this will be one of the hottest gifts for kids this holiday season.

Bits You Need to Know

Cozmo is as sophisticated mechanically as it is intelligent. It consists of hundreds of meticulously engineered parts that have been tested extensively for safety and durability. Some of the key components of the robot include a quartet of motors to help Cozmo move around, a display that showcases its emotions, as well as a VGA camera to help it see its surroundings.

Cozmo's movement setup is particularly impressive for a robot this tiny. Its four motors have over 50 gears, which allow it to move its treads, arms, and head so precisely.

In addition to helping the robot look around in 30 frames per second, Cozmo's VGA camera also features facial recognition software. The latter helps the robot remember people and interactions. As it interacts with you, it'll even show it's expression right on its screen so you know what it's thinking.

The artificial intelligence of Cozmo comes courtesy of a built-in CPU. It makes thousands of calculations every second, thus allowing the robot to have a bubbly and constantly evolving personality.

Anki ships Cozmo with a trio of interactive cubes and a charging dock. The cubes are essential for showcasing the robot's repertoire of tricks. They also allow users to play various games with Cozmo.

Interacting with Cozmo takes place via a smartphone app. Available for Android and iOS, it allows users to play games with the robot and make it perform various tricks, as well as introduce itself to other people. Cozmo connects to a smartphone via Wi-Fi.

Cozmo users who are willing to learn more about programming and robotics can download and install a software development kit. Powered by the widely used programming language Python, the SDK allows Cozmo owners to add to its functionality.

Live Impressions

It's impossible not to become enamored with Cozmo, just as it is impossible to not make an analogy between it and Pixar's WALL-E. From the movement on treads, through the cool sounds, all the way to the emotions Cozmo displays, it is clear that Anki has drawn inspiration from Disney's popular cartoon character.

Developing a personal connection with Cozmo is a quick process. You type your name in the app and follow the process of introducing yourself to the robot by looking at its camera sensor. Afterwards, every time it Cozmo sees you, it will great you like a good friend.

Most of the tricks that Cozmo performs include the bundled power cubes. The robot can carry them around, roll them, stack them up, or knock them down. Without cubes around, Cozmo can make cool wheelies, as well as pounce on fingers (no, it won't hurt you).

The cubes are also used to play games with Cozmo — Tap and Keepaway are two that are available out of the box. Tap, as its name suggests, requires tapping faster on your cube that the robot on its cube when they glow with matching colors.

Keepaway on the other hand, requires the player to remove the cube faster than Cozmo can pounce on it. Both games are catchy and entertaining, because of the robot's reactions.

Another cool way to engage with Cozmo is Explorer Way. It turns the robot into a tiny drone, which you can control with your smartphone while using its built-in camera to look around.

The coolest part about playing games with Cozmo is that it gets better with time — after several sessions, it becomes quite a challenge to beat its mechanical reflexes. Its set of available tricks grows the more you interact with it. Anki will teach the robot more stunts via future updates.

When you are not engaged with it, Cozmo simply looks around and performs the tricks it learned in random order. Occasionally, it will ask you if you want to play a game, too.

One of the downsides of playing with Cozmo the Wi-Fi connection that it requires. When connected to the robot, your smartphone will not have access to data, which means no emails, messages, and social network updates. Anki is expected to fix the issue via a future update.

Verdict

Anki's Cozmo is the coolest, and certainly cutest, smart toy released to date. By offering an impressive array of smarts in an easily accessible package, the tiny robot is equally great at being a toy and a friend, as well as a powerful robotics and programming learning platform.

Cozmo is not only a must-have toy for all kids aged 8 and up, but also an excellent desk companion for adults of all ages. Its cute face and endearing antics are certain to win everyone over regardless of age.

Stefan VazharovSenior Technology EditorStefan is the senior technology editor for BestProducts.com, where he’s been covering the tech industry and testing the latest gadgets since 2015; He previously covered tech products for GSMArena.com and his work can also be found on Popular Mechanics.